This budget was a major fail for housing affordability in Saskatchewan. In the recent Saskatchewan budget, the Moe government made the surprise announcement that it would slowly phase out a rental housing assistance program known as the Saskatchewan Rental Housing Supplement. Given current rental housing market realities, the government ought… Read more

On April 10, the Saskatchewan government tabled its 2018-19 budget. Here are 10 things to know: This year’s budget was quite status quo. Provincial expenses for the upcoming fiscal year are forecast at $14.6 billion, while total spending on health will see a 2.5% increase. Revenue forecast for 2018-19 is $14.2 billion.… Read more

As the second largest oil-producer in the country and home to a government that has vigorously promoted the oil industry and firmly opposed carbon pricing, one might assume that the Saskatchewan public is relatively united in their support for fossil fuel extraction. Winds of Change: Public Opinion on Energy Politics in… Read more

For those that feared that the Saskatchewan government would continue the punishing austerity they laid out in 2017, this year’s budget came as a mild relief. While the 2018 budget doesn’t restore the cuts made last year, the government appears to have opted for holding the line – offering no… Read more

Saskatchewan is a wealthy province with a poverty problem. More than one-in-ten people live in poverty and our child poverty rate is above the national average. Dig into the data and you find that some populations disproportionately bear the brunt of poverty in Saskatchewan. Single parent families, new Canadians,… Read more

Preamble Whereas poverty is not a natural phenomenon, but a consequence of political and structural forces over which governments have considerable influence; Whereas poverty is an impediment to realizing the full economic, social, and personal health of Saskatchewan’s peoples; Whereas living in poverty is particularly harmful to the health and… Read more

The Saskatchewan government promised “transformational change”… Instead we got a mean-spirited austerity budget that requires sacrifices from the many and delivers benefits to the few. It doesn’t have to be this way. For a government that prides itself on making “tough choices” this doesn’t seem that tough. Read more

John Clarke speaks on Saskatchewan’s austerity budget and how to fight back. As an organizer with the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP), John Clarke has been involved in poor people’s movements for over 25 years. He first became active in anti-poverty struggles in 1983, when he helped form the Union… Read more

In December, SaskForward began an online public consultation process that asked people across the province to answer the question, “What ‘transformational change’ would you introduce to make Saskatchewan a happier, healthier, and more prosperous place for all?” After receiving over one hundred submissions from individuals and organizations and hosting a policy… Read more

Re-imagining the future together RealRenewal’s some 200 members include parents, teachers, school staff, students, education experts and community members province-wide who share common cause in defending and supporting public education in Saskatchewan. We conduct research on education issues and gather ideas the public through forums, workshops, online surveys, and… Read more

Make Cameco Pay Up Saskatchewan citizens are conducting an ongoing campaign to have Cameco – one of the largest uranium companies in the world – pay the $2.2 billion bill that it has accumulated in unpaid taxes. Cameco has dodged every attempt to have them pay the people of Canada… Read more

Family Physician Dr. Sally Mahood suggests how evidence-based policy-making can improve the fairness and equity of our public health system in Saskatchewan. Social Determinants of Health Canada is one of the top four per capita healthcare spenders among 17 peer nations but among the bottom four for key measures… Read more

My name is Leah Arcand and I’m from Muskeg Lake Cree Nation. I would like to acknowledge Treaty 4 territory that we’re on today. And I would like to thank the organizers for inviting me to speak and you all for being here and showing an interest in transformational change.… Read more

Re-thinking Deficits and Austerity I want to discuss the elephant in the room that haunts any of the subsequent policy discussions we will have the rest of the day and that is obviously the current economic health of the province and the government’s financial situation. How we view the current… Read more

Transformation in an Era of Climate Change Across Canada people hear “Saskatchewan” and we are often dismissed as flat and boring. But Saskatchewan is so much more than this. We are home to the beautiful Athabasca Lake, surrounded by the most northerly active sand dune formation on earth and home… Read more

Introduction They are cooks, cleaners, wait staff. They are welders, electricians, and construction workers. They are nurses, physicians, and live-in caregivers. They are manual labourers in greenhouses and throughout the agricultural sector. Residents of Saskatchewan have direct and indirect encounters with them on a daily basis, whether it is each… Read more

The last seven months – July 2016 – January 2017 – has seen two major oil spills in Saskatchewan. This has prompted important reactions about the safety of pipelines both existing and in development. It has galvanized communities to take action against the pipeline dependence that is destroying environments… Read more

Upstream: Toward a Provincial Strategy on Obesity Prevention We have heard that Saskatchewan has a financial deficit of about $1 billion. We know that a large proportion of our Saskatchewan budget, perhaps 40 percent, is devoted to what is called “health care” although more correctly it should be called illness… Read more

Indigenous Authority Over Their Lands: True Stewards Northern Saskatchewan has a population that is 80% Cree, Dene and Metis. Northern communities maintain a strong relationship with the lands, rivers and lakes of the boreal forest we call home. The lands and water are intrinsically tied to the physical,… Read more

Supporting the public’s right to know: how we need to reform our Freedom of Information legislation in Saskatchewan “The overarching purpose of access to information legislation is to facilitate democracy by helping to ensure that citizens have the information required to participate meaningfully in the democratic process and that politicians and bureaucrats… Read more

Austerity and Health: Some Lessons from Around the World; Some Cautions for Saskatchewan The People’s Health Movement – Canada (PHM‐C) agrees with the assessment of austerity’s failure as summarized by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) in their December 2016 report The Futility of Austerity: Lessons for Saskatchewan. We would… Read more

Introduction The “transformational change” promised by the Saskatchewan government in early 2016 has not materialized. Instead, Saskatchewan has primarily witnessed a series of knee-jerk service cuts and austerity measures, driven by desperation to reduce costs by any means possible in the face of a massive budgetary deficit. An important first… Read more

Women disproportionately fare worse than men under conditions of austerity. Of course, women aren’t a unified group with internally coherent identities, and women don’t experience inequalities in the same ways. Indigenous women, women of colour, new immigrant and refugee women, settler women, queer women, trans women and non-binary folks,… Read more

The Government of Saskatchewan’s announcement following the budget of 2016 to launch a “transformational” agenda in response to a massive deficit was a puzzling and confusing political move. What exactly did Premier Wall have in mind? What magnitude of change was the government considering? Transform has two different meanings, “to… Read more

If we are serious about decolonization in Saskatchewan, then the role of police in targeting, harassing, assaulting, incarcerating, and disrespecting Indigenous people – as well as the low-income, disabled, and marginalized – must be addressed. Too many people experience the police as a violent, racist force in our cities,… Read more

Renters of Saskatoon and Area (ROSA) is a grass-roots group of renters and allies, formed over 2 years ago. We have prioritized a few of our many renter concerns here. Saskatchewan’s rental housing market has failed to meet the needs of low income and marginalized renters in both the… Read more

Green Energy and the SaskForward Vision By Mark Bigland-Pritchard The author is a Saskatoon-based independent energy consultant, with a background in applied physics and engineering. He is principal researcher for Green Energy Project Saskatchewan, and a core member of Climate Justice Saskatoon. Political views expressed here are his own.… Read more

YANCOAL SOUTHEY PROJECT: A HUGE STEP AWAY FROM SUSTAINABILITY 1. UNDERMINING PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT: Yancoal’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was only released on April 23, 2016, yet Yancoal tells us in its April 17th letter that “the public comments deadline will be May 24th”. Meanwhile it took the Saskatchewan Environmental Assessment… Read more

My idea for making Saskatchewan a better place to live is for the government to re-establish the successful employment strategy for Indigenous Peoples in this province. For 12 years, there was a program in place that improved employment for Aboriginal Peoples but the Wall government cancelled it and 98 partnership… Read more

I would like to see a provincial government that doesn’t avoid improving the quality of life of Indigenous People and working towards reconciliation in Saskatchewan because of jurisdiction issues with the Federal Government. We’re all treaty people, and we need a province that acts like it. Saskatchewan can be a… Read more

There are several changes I might propose in order to improve the quality of life for Saskatchewan folks: We need to move to green energy and green economy to ensure the health of the population in light of the high rates of cancer in the province; We need to deal… Read more

OVERCROWDING IN SASKATCHEWAN PRISONS Over the last decade, overcrowding has become a major issue in the Saskatchewan prison system. Prison Boom The Saskatchewan prison population has grown by 51% since 2006. The current prisoner population is 1,792. Thus cells that were built for one prisoner are being double-bunked; and… Read more

There is an alarming need for additional resources to be directed towards addiction treatment in Saskatchewan. While there is a cost associated with addictions treatment, the corresponding savings to the people of Saskatchewan through reduced use of social programs, reduced emergent and long term medical care and reduced need for… Read more

Canada trails the pack when it comes to mental health funding in comparison to other industrially developed nations. In Saskatchewan specifically, only five percent of the provincial government’s health budget is earmarked for mental health. According to the Saskatchewan Division of the Canadian Mental Health Association, this is two percent less… Read more

Police officers are given discretion in how they do their jobs. When they use their discretion wisely, everyone benefits. Officers are given discretion as to who to charge with offences, and when to do so. Many charges are dropped once entered into the system. There is some focus on “diverting”… Read more

It’s tough to figure out where we should start. First off, real “transformational change” would include an ambitious homelessness strategy that makes massive financial commitments for Housing First initiatives that are already off the ground in Regina and Saskatoon. Included in this funding arrangement would be resources adequate to provide… Read more

“Success within Saskatchewan is about enhancing our greatest asset, our people. First Nations have endured a lot throughout generations and continue to strive for success and equality while maintaining what is core to ones self, proud to be First Nation. Inclusion and empowerment is the driver to successful First Nation… Read more

Saskatchewan covers 651,036 km comprising 6.5% of Canada. Saskatchewan was settled by indigenous peoples as soon as the glaciers retreated roughly 11,000 years ago. Saskatchewan includes four ecozones: prairie, the boreal transition, boreal forest and taiga. Our province is home to at least seven First Nations and six Treaties are meant… Read more

It is my view that our province should increase investment in both wind generated and solar generated electricity much faster than is currently being planned. There are many places where wind farms and solar generators of various types could be built with little or no significant affect on humans or… Read more

The Saskatchewan Party government has stated that it is interested in transforming the provincial state. Recognizing that much of the “transformative change” rhetoric is coming at a time of fiscal stress, there will undoubtedly be calls by some to drastically scale back important areas of the social welfare state. This… Read more

The transformational change needed in Saskatchewan is in health care. Our health care system pays out millions upon millions to CEOs and VPs each year while cutting front line staff – the people who actually make a difference in this world. By cutting management positions and putting some of that… Read more

We must get away from the standardized testing– skill and drill– “quick fix” approach to improving educational outcomes– that would be my number one suggestion for real transformational change with regard to education policy in Saskatchewan. More tests won’t help, It’s just not that easy. If we don’t improve upon… Read more

Saskatchewan people are per capita the largest producers of climate changing greenhouse gases in Canada, and consequently nearing the top in the world. At the same time, the fertility of our agricultural lands is being degraded through large-field mono-cropping, over-tillage, and the heavy use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. These… Read more

As a researcher who works in the area of household food insecurity, I would like to see policy and programs that ensure everyone is able to have the financial means to access the food they need to be healthy (whatever that means to them). This means ensuring we have a… Read more

Globalization and industrialization have driven agriculture to the margins of Saskatchewan’s economic and cultural life, converting farming into an undervalued activity that provides the raw material for food processing and delivery industries that provide unhealthy food to fuel an overheated, profligate, carbon-emitting economy. One way to transform Saskatchewan, renew our… Read more

Over the summer we conducted our Workers’ Climate Plan in response to the federal governments National Climate Strategy consultations. We surveyed tradespeople and the public across the country to get their views on what a just transition for Canada’s future energy needs looks like and what is important to them… Read more

HOMELESS IN SASKATCHEWAN Currently, Saskatchewan is experiencing a homelessness crisis. Saskatoon’s 2015 point-in-time count found 450 people were homeless, a 19% increase over the previous count. In Regina, the YWCA is currently compiling a registry of homeless people. So far there are 240 names on the list. These figures do… Read more

By Mélissa Compain. Saskatchewan teacher Mélissa Compain speaks to SaskForward on how neighbourhood schools could be used to host other community services and programs needed by the community. Read more

By Peter Gilmer, Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry. Introduction The Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry (RAPM) is a social justice ministry of Wascana Presbytery of the United Church of Canada. Bonnie Morton and myself work for a board which is a cross-section of church members, representatives of community groups that deal with poverty… Read more

By The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives – Saskatchewan Office. Introduction The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives – Saskatchewan Office welcomes the opportunity to present our views and recommendations to SaskForward. The CCPA is Canada’s leading progressive think tank with offices in Ontario, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Nova Scotia.… Read more